What is Redevelopment and the Redevelopment Agency?
Redevelopment is the activity carried out by the Agency and consists of actions taken to eliminate blight from a designated area. Blight is defined as an economic or physical condition that causes an area to suffer from negative environmental conditions, or negative impacts to the health, safety, or welfare of people in the area. Examples of blight include inadequate streets or sidewalks, lack of parking, excessive vacant or abandoned residential or commercial properties, and dilapidated properties. A Redevelopment Agency is a legally recognized political subdivision of the State, such as a City or County. In Berkeley, the Redevelopment Agency is governed by the City Council, which acts as the Berkeley Redevelopment Agency Board. The Agency has its own source of funds, and its own spending criteria and spending limits. The responsibilities of a Redevelopment Agency frequently include re-planning, redesign, reconstruction, clearance, rehabilitation, construction of new public facilities
